Manganese is an important ferrous metal. Manganese ore is mainly divided into two categories: manganese oxide and manganese carbonate. Different mineral processing methods are often used according to different ore properties.

1. Manganese oxide

This type of ore is mainly the secondary manganese oxide ore in the weathered ore deposit, and the primary and secondary manganese oxide ores of some sedimentary and hydrothermal deposits. Manganese minerals in ores are mainly pyrolusite, pyrolusite and manganese ore. Gangue is mainly silicate minerals and carbonate minerals, often accompanied by iron, phosphorus and nickel and cobalt. The main beneficiation method of manganese oxide ore is gravity. Weathering type oxidation manganese ore often contains large amounts of mud and mineral powder, production of the ore washing by rotary scrubber, or spiral ore washing machine and gravity separation using jig, shaking table orspiral chute. The ore washing to remove slime, mine net income, some can be used as a finished ore, some need to use the jig and shaking table etc. Washing overflow sometimes needs to be further recovered by means of gravity separation or strong magnetic separation. Some sedimentary type of primary manganese oxide ore, due to the mining and dilution, the production of heavy medium and jigging to remove the gangue, and get massive concentrate.

In the iron ore containing iron oxide, the iron minerals are mainly limonite. Iron and manganese are difficult to be separated by gravity separation, flotation or high intensity magnetic separation. The reduction roasting and magnetic separation method is needed. The washing, reduction, roasting, magnetic separation and gravity separation process is often used in industry.

2.Manganese carbonate ore

The main manganese minerals in sedimentary manganese carbonate ore are magnesite, calcite, sulphur calcite and siderite. Gangue has silicate and carbonate minerals, and is also associated with sulfur and iron impurities. The ore is generally more complex. The granularity of manganese mineral is thin to a few microns, and it is difficult to be dissociated. It is often difficult to get high grade of concentrate. The production practice of manganese carbonate ore is less, and the methods of strong magnetic separation, heavy medium ore dressing and flotation are studied. Some sedimentary types of sulphur containing manganese carbonate ores have been used in the industrial process of sequential preferential flotation of carbonaceous shale, pyrite and manganese minerals. Some hydrothermal type manganese carbonate ores containing lead and zinc carbonate have been used in the flotation - strong magnetic separation process. Some sulfur rich ores, manganese minerals mainly sulphur manganese ore, can be used to remove sulfur by roasting. Some rich manganese carbonate ores are produced by roasting, removing volatile components and getting the finished ore.

Manganese oxide and manganese carbonate ore contain some refractory ores. Manganese is closely associated with iron, phosphorus or gangue. The particle size is very thin and difficult to be sorted. It can be treated by smelting. For example, the method of manganese rich slag treatment for high phosphorus, high iron and manganese ore, the production of activated manganese dioxide by nitric acid leaching and the production of metal manganese have been produced in industrial production.